In recent years the family of five "have suffered a number of setbacks," recalls Tamara T. After a number of hardships and a block of flats with mould infestation, which above all badly afflicted their son (4) who has a severe heart problem, they found a house from 1972 and bought it. Their fortunes finally seemed to be on the up, but soon after it turned out that their prefab house was contaminated with pollutants and thus uninhabitable.

With the exception of the screed and the roof, everything had to be demolished, rebuilt and replaced. The costs were too high for the family to bear alone. Their legal action continues but the outcome is unknown.

In their desperation the family asked for support through financial and material donations. Parador promptly made the decision to support this rescue project as part of its "40 years, 40 projects" campaign. "The phonecall from Parador was a huge moment of happiness," explains Tamara T.

The family opted for engineered wood flooring for the kitchen and living rooms, as well as vinyl flooring for the hallways and bathroom. As the flooring was being laid, little Jonathan beamed: "Look, even the last flooring is in there now."

Since September, the family have been living in their own home for the first time after 1 ½ years in temporary accommodation and are impressed with the floors. "We can finally walk around the whole house in socks or barefoot. The floor even passed our two daughters' dancing test with flying colours."

Click through the photo gallery and find out more about the project!

This is what the prefab house, built in 1972, looked like when the family bought it in 2016.

But before the family moved in, a survey found that their new home was contaminated and uninhabitable.

Except for the roof and screed, everything had to be disposed of and replaced. The family were facing ruin.

During this time the family moved from one temporary accommodation to the next – all the while with a seriously ill infant and an uncertain future.

In their desperation, the family asked for support through financial and material donations. Parador supported the family of five as part of its "40 years, 40 projects" campaign with flooring for the whole house.

Little Jonathan (4) liked the flooring right from the off.

Thanks to the Akustic Protect 100 underlay his big sisters (12 and 15) can make noise upstairs without disturbing him below.

A healthy flooring is the best way. Jonathan was born with a serious heart defect and is very sensitive to outside influences. That's why the Blue Angel, Real Wood, PEFC™ and TÜV Rheinland certifications were particularly important to the family.

After putting in 3,000 hours of work themselves and thanks to many material donations, the family managed to practically rebuild the house. The father laid the flooring himself, without any prior knowledge. He was impressed with the Automatic Click® System. The laying was done in no time at all.

In the hallways the two vinyl floors Mineral Grey tile look and concrete grey tile look were laid. A special surface treatment keeps dirt and bacteria away and improves hygiene and healthy living.